Tango Cafe a Saugerties fixture

Tango Cafe is at the intersection of Partition and Main streets in Saugerties.
Tania Barricklo-Daily Freeman

RECIPE: Tango Cafe Chimichurri Steak Sauce

Serves 10 people

Chimichurri:

1 cup of Olive oil

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

Bunch of chopped parsley found in store.

3 tablespoons of finely chopped garlic, “no garlic powder”

1 teaspoon of chili pepper

Pinch of oregano

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

Mix all ingredients together well in a large bowl. The color should be mostly green.

Add a small amount to steak after it’s barbecued and eat.

Can be kept in refrigerator and used again for up to a week.

SAUGERTIES>> Tango Cafe, owned by the brother-sister team of Emilio Maya and Analia Chrisjohn, has become a fixture in the Saugerties dining scene since its opening in 2007, said Emilio’s Maya’s wife, Kseniya Maya.

The restaurant at the corner of Partition and Main streets serves Argentine-American fusion cuisine in a casual cafe setting.

She said the name Tango Cafe was chosen because tango is one of the things most commonly associated with Argentine culture.

“We thought it was the perfect way to explain how we serve American food with an Argentine flavor,” she said.

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And folks can actually take tango lessons offered by Ilene Marder of Woodstock Tango on the first Friday of each month as part of the Saugerties First Friday program.

Guests can enjoy all-night tango and milonga dancing served up with a side of Argentine favorites like asado, an Argentine barbecue, and empanadas, one of the most popular items at Tango, she said.

The empanadas, meat pies made with pastry shells filled with chicken, beef or vegetables, blazed a culinary trail in Saugerties, she said.

“We we’re one of the first restaurants to have them,” she said. “And now we’re seeing them all over the place.

“They make a great healthy snack, something quick on the go or a whole meal,” she said.

And people travel far and wide for them, she said.

“We have people who come from New York who say these are best empanadas they’ve ever had,” she said. “We’ve had people who travel hundreds of miles for them.”

But she said perhaps their most popular dish is the lomo sandwich, which is made of steak, cheddar cheese, fried egg, lettuce, tomato, onion, ham and steak, served up on a pita bread.

“It was named one of the top 10 sandwiches in the Hudson Valley by Hudson Valley Magazine,” she said.

Diners can try Chimichura sauce on their steak for a flavor far different than the usual A1, she said.

Diners can also sample more traditional American favorites like burgers, wraps and quesadillas, but with a special twist, she said.

“We put a little bit of Argentine flavor into everything we have,” she said.

And to wash it all down, diners can enjoy a non-dairy, all-fruit smoothie made without added sugar, corn syrup or yogurt.

“Parents really love it because kids have something healthier that tastes great,” she said. “Those smoothies at the mall are so loaded with sugar and artificial flavors.”

Diners can also opt for espresso drinks from a full coffee bar, she said.

For breakfast, diners can sample traditional favorites like eggs Benedict, scrambled eggs, pancakes and waffles with a touch of dulce de leche.

If diners don’t like what’s on the menu, Tango can customize almost everything, she said.

“We can leave ingredients out for people with allergies,” she said. “We can make things gluten free or vegetarian.”

Even though customizing dishes means more work for everyone, Tango doesn’t mind doing it, because it’s doing right by their customers, she said. “We understand. We’re picky eaters, too.”

Having kids of their own, whom diners will often see or hear in the warmly lit dining area, Tango makes accommodating families one of their top priorities, she said.

“We have kids so we understand what parents go through,” she said. “Kids want to get up and play, and that’s why we have some toys behind the counter.”

This strategy has worked as Maya said much of their weekend business comes from families with children.

And making diners feel like they’re family is important to Maya because she said that’s what makes for the repeat customers that have kept the restaurant going for so many years.

“We get a lot of people who talk to us every time they come in and they share what’s going on in their life with us,” she said.

Emilio Maya and Analia Chrisjohn’ own lives since their arrival to the United States from Argentina in 1998 has been tumultuous at times, even drawing international attention some years ago because the uncertainty of their status in the country. They’re still going through those problems, Kseniya Maya said.

But even after all that, they remain a staple in the community and at the restaurant.

The corner storefront with it’s exposed brick walls, warm lighting, and wooden bar evokes a small European cafe, and encourages diners to hang around and socialize among each other and with the owners.

Ksenyia Maya said this location is special because her husband Emilio Maya served as a chef for the previous owners and his sister worked there as well.

Artwork from local artists who eat at Tango hangs on the walls, and she said she encourages local artists who want to have their work displayed to contact the restaurant.

Maya pointed out a painting of the building the restaurant is housed in and she said it came from a customer in Woodstock.

“Last year we had posters from the Woodstock Film Festival,” she said.

Maya said they looked into Catskill and Kingston locations for Tango before settling on Saugerties as the perfect spot, she said.

“Saugerties feels like a hometown,” she said. “It’s just the perfect size for us.”

As for the what the future holds, Maya said they are planning to launch a new brunch menu that will served during the latter part of the breakfast hours and also during lunch.

Longer down the road, Maya said Tango hopes to get a beer and wine license so they could serve a more formal Argentine dinner featuring steak and sausage paired with Malbec, an Argentine wine, and Argentine beers.